In this paper we provide an approximation \`a la Ambrosio-Tortorelli of some classical minimization problems involving the length of an unknown one-dimensional set, with an additional connectedness constraint, in dimension two. We introduce a term of new type relying on a weighted geodesic distance that forces the minimizers to be connected at the limit. We apply this approach to approximate the so-called Steiner Problem, but also the average distance problem, and finally a problem relying on...
Topics: Mathematics, Metric Geometry, Functional Analysis, Analysis of PDEs
Source: http://arxiv.org/abs/1403.3004

In this article, we consider and analyse a small variant of a functional originally introduced in \cite{BLS,LS} to approximate the (geometric) planar Steiner problem. This functional depends on a small parameter $\varepsilon>0$ and resembles the (scalar) Ginzburg-Landau functional from phase transitions. In a first part, we prove existence and regularity of minimizers for this functional. Then we provide a detailed analysis of their behavior as $\varepsilon\to0$, showing in particular that...
Topics: Analysis of PDEs, Mathematics
Source: http://arxiv.org/abs/1611.07875

The expected gamma-ray flux coming from dark matter annihilation in dwarf spheroidal (dSph) galaxies depends on the so-called `J-factor', the integral of the squared dark matter density along the line-of-sight. We examine the degree to which estimates of J are sensitive to contamination (by foreground Milky Way stars and stellar streams) of the stellar-kinematic samples that are used to infer dark matter densities in `ultrafaint' dSphs. Applying standard kinematic analyses to hundreds of mock...
Topics: Astrophysics, Astrophysics of Galaxies
Source: http://arxiv.org/abs/1506.08209

We present a quantitative analysis of the effect of rough hydrophobic surfaces on viscous newtonian flows. We use a model introduced by Ybert and coauthors in which the rough surface is replaced by a flat plane with alternating small areas of slip and no-slip. We investigate the averaged slip generated at the boundary, depending on the ratio between these areas. This problem reduces to the homogenization of a non-local system, involving the Dirichlet to Neumann map of the Stokes operator, in a...
Source: http://arxiv.org/abs/1301.4067v1

Dwarf spheroidal (dSph) galaxies are among the most promising targets for the indirect detection of dark matter (DM) from annihilation and/or decay products. Empirical estimates of their DM content - and hence the magnitudes of expected signals - rely on inferences from stellar-kinematic data. However, various kinematic analyses can give different results and it is not obvious which are most reliable. Using extensive sets of mock data of various sizes (mimicking 'ultra-faint' and 'classical'...
Topics: Astrophysics of Galaxies, High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena, Astrophysics
Source: http://arxiv.org/abs/1407.7822

This article is from BMC Genomics , volume 12 . Abstract Background: DIRS1-like elements compose one superfamily of tyrosine recombinase-encoding retrotransposons. They have been previously reported in only a few diverse eukaryote species, describing a patchy distribution, and little is known about their origin and dynamics. Recently, we have shown that these retrotransposons are common among decapods, which calls into question the distribution of DIRS1-like retrotransposons among eukaryotes....
Source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3266345

We present an update of the CLUMPY code for the calculation of the astrophysical J-factors (from dark matter annihilation/decay) for any Galactic or extragalactic dark matter halo including substructures: halo-to-halo concentration scatter may now be enabled, boost factors can include several levels of substructures, and triaxiality is a new option for dark matter haloes. This new version takes advantage of the CFITSIO and HEALPix libraries to propose FITS output maps using the HEALPix...
Topics: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology, High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena, Cosmology and Nongalactic...
Source: http://arxiv.org/abs/1506.07628

The dwarf spheroidal galaxies (dSph) of the Milky Way are among the most attractive targets for indirect searches of dark matter. In this work, we reconstruct the dark matter annihilation (J-factor) and decay profiles for the newly discovered dSph Reticulum II. Using an optimized spherical Jeans analysis of kinematic data obtained from the Michigan/Magellan Fiber System (M2FS), we find Reticulum II's J-factor to be among the largest of any Milky Way dSph. We have checked the robustness of this...
Topics: High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena, Astrophysics, High Energy Physics - Phenomenology
Source: http://arxiv.org/abs/1504.03309

Dwarf spheroidal (dSph) galaxies are prime targets for present and future gamma-ray telescopes hunting for indirect signals of particle dark matter. The interpretation of the data requires careful assessment of their dark matter content in order to derive robust constraints on candidate relic particles. Here, we use an optimised spherical Jeans analysis to reconstruct the `astrophysical factor' for both annihilating and decaying dark matter in 21 known dSphs. Improvements with respect to...
Topics: Astrophysics of Galaxies, High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena, Astrophysics
Source: http://arxiv.org/abs/1504.02048

We present results from spectroscopic observations with the Michigan/Magellan Fiber System (M2FS) of $147$ stellar targets along the line of sight to the newly-discovered `ultrafaint' stellar systems Tucana 2 (Tuc 2) and Grus 1 (Gru 1). Based on simultaneous estimates of line-of-sight velocity and stellar-atmospheric parameters, we identify 8 and 7 stars as probable members of Tuc 2 and and Gru 1, respectively. Our sample for Tuc 2 is sufficient to resolve an internal velocity dispersion of...
Topics: Astrophysics, Astrophysics of Galaxies
Source: http://arxiv.org/abs/1511.06296